Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.23.6
Sthāna· The universe in orderStars Mark the Śiśumāra’s Limbs
“On the right and left sides of where the loins might be on the Śiśumāra-cakra are the stars named Punarvasu and Puṣyā. Ārdrā and Aśleṣā are on its right and left feet, Abhijit and Uttarāṣāḍhā are on its right and left nostrils, Śravaṇā and Pūrvāṣāḍhā are at its right and left eyes, and Dhaniṣṭhā and Mūlā are on its right and left ears. The eight stars from Maghā to Anurādhā, which mark the southern course, are on the ribs of the left of its body, and the eight stars from Mṛgaśīrṣā to Pūrvabhādra, which mark the northern course, are on the ribs on the right side. Śatabhiṣā and Jyeṣṭhā are on the right and left shoulders.”
What the purport teaches
- Punarvasu and Puṣyā are at the right and left loins, while Ārdrā and Aśleṣā are at the right and left feet. Śatabhiṣā and Jyeṣṭhā mark the right and left shoulders.
- Abhijit and Uttarāṣāḍhā mark the nostrils, Śravaṇā and Pūrvāṣāḍhā the eyes, and Dhaniṣṭhā and Mūlā the ears. Each pair is placed on the right and left respectively.
- Eight stars from Maghā to Anurādhā mark the southern course on the left ribs. Eight stars from Mṛgaśīrṣā to Pūrvabhādra mark the northern course on the right ribs.
Try this today
Write down the names of the two stars placed at the eyes, noting which is on the right and which is on the left.
Ask yourself
How does learning one pair of stars at a time help me attend carefully to this description?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.